The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Lagerstroemia plant botanically known as Lagerstroemia indica and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name ‘Congrabel’.
The new cultivar originated in a controlled breeding program in Earleville, Md. during spring 2012. The objective of the breeding program was the development of Lagerstroemia cultivars having abundant inflorescences with attractive flower coloration and compact growth habit.
The new Lagerstroemia cultivar is the result of open-pollination. The female (seed) parent of the new cultivar is ‘Twilight’, not patented, characterized by its purple-colored flowers, deep green-colored foliage, and vigorous, upright growth habit. The male (pollen) parent of the new cultivar is unknown. The new cultivar was discovered and selected as a single flowering plant within the progeny of the above stated open-pollination during July 2012 in a controlled environment in Earleville, Md.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by terminal stem cuttings since August 2012 in West Grove, Pa. has demonstrated that the new cultivar reproduces true-to-type with all of the characteristics, as herein described, firmly fixed and retained through successive generations of such asexual propagation.